In 2023, Slovenia will be the Guest of Honor at the Frankfurt Book Fair. At the same time, 175 years have passed since the first publication of the poem Zdravljica (Drinking Song), a particularly important text from the pen of the Classic of Slovenian literature, France Prešeren. These verses survived all wars and upheavals, they even became the anthem of the Slovenian state; as such, they offer the best insight into the poet's search for the perfect linguistic expression and a cultural spirit guided by the peaceful coexistence of people. France Prešeren is the authoritative poet of the Slovenian nation.

Who actually was Prešeren and what do his poems tell about? The exhibition in the Manuscript Studio shows a selection of the first and more significant editions of France Prešeren and his pupil Luiza Pesjak, which are kept in the National and University Library in Ljubljana. It sheds light on Prešeren's work, life, views, hardships and joys. Presented are seminal works, which are at the same time an expression of the intrinsic quality of Slovenian Romanticism and outstanding literary creation.

The five showcases offer a focused look at the poet. We get to know him as a person, poet, visionary, contemporary and literary figure. First, we approach him autobiographically. Then, through a tribute to the painter who portrayed Prešeren's lover, we embark on an intimate journey into the poet's life, the central event of which is the birth and death of his love for Julija Primic. The poet experiences her as a muse and a source of his own literary creation. In the Sonetje nesreče (Sonnets of Unhappiness), in which Prešeren writes of an existential joylessness of the individual, in the Sonetni venec (Sonnet Wreath) characterized by a sophisticated form, and also in the gentle poetic confession of his Gazele (Ghaselen), we come closer to the poet. Then we get acquainted with his ideas about the tragic fate of the artist and with his personal and political message to the world, which speaks to us from Zdravljica. After that, we will have some reflections on the reception of his work and we will learn how Prešeren connected with other literary figures and with which outstanding contemporaries he maintained relationships. Finally, we turn to the work of Luiza Pesjak, a poet, writer and playwright, whose verses encouraged her to write literature in her youth. She honors Prešeren by making him the hero of one of her tragedies.

The story of Prešeren, told through the exhibition material compiled by Prof. Dr. Dr. Igor Grdina and Prof. Dr. Urška Perenič, echoes the times of upheaval in which the poet created. The curatorial team shows both the historical context and - in outline - the development of the intellectual space of Slovenian literature into which Prešeren entered, as well as the important legacy he left to Slovenian and European culture. The rootedness of his work in the European space was also confirmed in March 2020, when the European Commission awarded Prešeren's Zdravljica the European Heritage Label and included this valuable document among the most important cultural monuments testifying to the history of the European idea and integration. Thus, the National and University Library acts not only as a repository of the manuscript, but also as a caretaker of this cultural heritage.